Social media giant Twitter – now led by Elon Musk – is now barraged by lawsuits demanding that it pay its bills amounting to more than $14 million plus interest.
At least nine lawsuits were filed by landlords, consultants and vendors who, in the past months, have demanded payments. The suits came amid the company trying to cut costs and break even since the SpaceX and Tesla CEO took over in a $44 billion purchase. (Related: Elon Musk changes course, now says he plans to go through with Twitter purchase.)
Among the payments due include a $7,000 bill released by Twitter's marketing department for a "swag gift box" for Musk given before the $44 billion agreement closed on Oct. 27. The vendor in charge of the box insists that no payment has been given yet. The said gift box included a sandblasted logo on a Japanese whisky bottle, an extra-large bomber jacket and more than $250 worth of socks, according to court filings.
In a separate case, a marketing company alleged that Twitter owes it nearly $400,000 for company-branded merchandise.
Twitter is also facing at least three lawsuits connected to office space, as well as allegations of failing to pay almost $6.8 million in rent for its San Francisco headquarters in December 2022 and January 2023.
Last year, it racked up a $239 million bill which mostly went to office space and data center facilities. A report in December also pointed out that Musk was no longer paying rent on Twitter's Seattle office and was also planning to shutter one of the company's New York locations.
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Musk auctioned off office supplies, furniture
Musk quickly adopted a thrifty attitude toward spending from the time he stepped foot inside the company headquarters. To this end, he auctioned off office supplies and furniture – including a large Twitter bird statue and other thousand-dollar items.
Several luxury items were auctioned off, including a $20,000 espresso machine, a $10,000 vegetable dryer and a $17,000 braising pan. Other furniture sold off included an "@"-shaped planter, chairs, tables and kegs.
Aside from this, the San Francisco headquarters was compressed from four floors to two. Twitter under musk did away with lavish perks, leaving the bare essentials – in this case, offices that reeked of leftover takeout and body odor. Housekeeping was eschewed after Musk dismissed janitors who went on strike to ask for better wages.
This was not the first time Musk tightened belts at Twitter. He earlier reduced staff and costs in response to an advertiser withdrawal and deal-connected debt expenses. He also publicly denounced the company's spending, along with the $13 million spent every year on employee meals.
Even though he originally indicated that Twitter could face bankruptcy because of losing over $4 million per day, Musk has lately said that the company is now making headway toward breaking even. Twitter is presently private and no longer publicly reports its financial records.
Restructuring expert Van Conway, who has almost 40 years of experience helping distressed companies, commented on Musk's actions to save money.
"What Musk is doing is essentially mimicking a bankruptcy," he said. "He is slashing costs with a machete."
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Watch European Union Commissioner Vera Jourova warn Elon Musk about lax moderation on Twitter below.
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